7 charged in LA with smuggling endangered fish

LOS ANGELES 
The endangered arowana fish is considered auspicious in China and southeast Asia, but the fish brought bad luck to seven people who were indicted Tuesday with smuggling 12 juvenile fish into the United States.

A federal grand jury indicted an Indonesian exporter and six people across the country with illegally importing the prized dragon fish and selling an endangered species.

The indictments stem from a 2005 undercover sting operation in which a U.S. Fish and Wildlife agent pretended to be a middleman working for an exporter in Bogor, Indonesia.

The alleged smuggler, Andree Gunawan, was charged with two felony counts of smuggling endangered wildlife and four misdemeanor counts of offering an endangered species for sale. He faces a maximum sentence of 44 years in prison and $800,000 in fines if convicted.

Gunawan operates a website called Fantasy Aquatics where he sells beta fish and rare aquarium species.

Many Asian cultures believe arowana fish bring luck and protect their owners from evil spirits. The predatory fish live in jungle rivers and streams, where they jump out of the water to eat insects and amphibians that linger above the surface.

The fish is considered lucky because it resembles a Chinese dragon, with pectoral fins that resemble wings, two small whiskers sticking out of its lower lip like a dragon's forked tongue, and a colorful tail.

The juveniles sell for about $1,000, and the more colorful adults, which can grow more than 2 feet long, go for up to $20,000, Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Johns said.

Johns said the case is unique because Fish and Wildlife Special Agent Ed Newcomer was able to insert himself into the distribution chain and take down six of the alleged smuggler's customers.

Newcomer said Gunawan posted on a website for aquarium hobbyists looking for help smuggling dragon fish. The agent then claimed he had a contact who could make sure the fish cleared customs and began an undercover operation as the intermediary between Gunawan and people in the United States who wanted to sell the rare fish or keep them for themselves, he said.

"It was the perfect place to be in because I got all the incriminating information and met all the people involved," he said.

Gunawan used e-mail to introduce Newcomer to the buyers, who were located in Southern California, San Jose, Texas and Louisville, Ky., he said.

"The majority were contemplating reselling for a profit. Some said they weren't but I didn't believe them," Newcomer said. "People think wildlife smugglers are hobbyists gone bad, but most of them are in it for the money."

He said he personally delivered the first shipment of two fish to Samuel Hai-Hung Lam, 38, of San Diego, and Tien Q. Le, of Louisville, Ky. The suspects paid from $1,000 to $2,500 per fish.

Federal agents detained Everette Villota, 34, of Carson, and Jim Nguyen, 23, of Garden Grove, in the parking lot of a Target minutes after they picked up five arowana fish, he said.

The other defendants are Thy Tran, 30, of San Jose, and Fu-Hua Ku, 32, of Richardson, Texas.

The 12 juvenile fish survived the air freight trip from Indonesia and will be given to aquariums.